A good build for audio editing? (Laptop)

[Brandon B]

Hey guys. This build was suggested to me by a highly experienced programmer friend of mine. I do a lot of music production on my laptop, so this thing will need to handle lots of incoming data from hardware (I don’t need more ports).

A big concern of mine is that, while the rig below might have tons of power for a good price, there might arise some compatibility issues due to some random, cheap part crapping out. This has taken me to consider the new macbook air (with external HD), or an old macbook pro, simply because compatibility and stability should be less of an issue. Again, I basically just need a USB port so that’s not an issue.

I use an external soundcard by way of my Novation Ultranova synthesizer/midi controller/audio in.

Do you guys think that the improved performance of this custom rig will be worth the increased chance of instability inherent with a custom rig? Thanks for your advice on making this cheaper/better + good alternatives.



Pre Customization specs-
ASUS A55A-EB71 15.6-Inch LED Laptop ($615.00)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...ct_details?ie=UTF8&me=&seller=#productDetails
Intel i7 3610QM 2.3 GHz
4 GB SO-DIMM
500 GB 5400 RPM Hard Drive
15.6-Inch Screen, Intel GMA HD
Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit

Custom Parts:
Kingston HyperX 3K 240 GB SATA III 2.5-Inch 6.0 Gb/s Solid State Drive SH103S3/240G ($180.00)
http://www.amazon.com/Kingston-HyperX-2-5-Inch-SH103S3-240G/dp/B007R67FTY/ref=cm_cr_dp_asin_lnk

16 GB RAM, ($75.00 and is compatible w/ the Asus)
http://www.amazon.com/Crucial-PC3-1...8G3S160BM/dp/B008LTBJFW/ref=cm_cr_dp_asin_lnk

Wi-Fi/Bluetooth Adapter ($25.00)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004PG08SE/ref=olp_product_details?ie=UTF8&me=&seller=

Hard Drive Upgrade Kit ($15.00)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002EUCU3O/ref=cm_cd_asin_lnk

Hard Drive Enclosure ($22.00)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B009DNIWKA/ref=dp_olp_new?ie=UTF8&condition=new


Final Specs:
Intel i7 3610QM 2.3 GHz
16 GB RAM
240 GB SSD w/ 500 GB external Hard Drive
5 GHz network
15.6-Inch Screen, Intel GMA HD 4000

Total Cost: $1,042

 

[EarthDog]

Im shocked a laptop is good at that functionality... I mean your sound is only as good as your worst part, and is a laptop soundcard good enough for what you do?

 

[Brandon B]

Oh wow. Sorry for that oversight. I use the external soundcard in my main synthesizer, which is connected via usb. I do all my recording through this. I put the edit in my original post.

 

[capitalfear]

That Asus with those parts looks pretty tight to me.

 

[capitalfear]

Oh wow. Sorry for that oversight. I use the external soundcard in my main synthesizer, which is connected via usb. I do all my recording through this. I put the edit in my original post.

What kind of external sound card do you use? The Saffire 6 USB has served me well. I record my guitar, bass, am planning to record electronic drums through it eventually, and my keyboard for dubstep.